Only in Vegas: Sprinting Santas and Run-Through Weddings

A sea of Santas in a silly sprint. Fido, it seems, has been very good this year.

More than 40,000 people run past fake New York, fake Paris and fake Venice during a real marathon in a surreal city.

A once (Jessica Jensen) and future runner (Zoe Jensen) nuzzle after the Santa Run. Zoe was named "cutest baby Santa."

The Zappos.com Rock ‘n’ Roll Las Vegas Marathon used to begin before dawn. Now the first heat starts at 3 p.m., prompting organizers to call the race "Strip at Night."

Got Santas? It's gotta be hotter than hell running in a Santa suit.

It wouldn't be Vegas without cheesy wedding gimmicks like, say, a run-through ceremony

St. Nicks, doing some last-second training for the run.

We'd like to think the dozens of couples who got hitched met long before their nuptials and developed healthy relationships before tying the knot. This being Vegas, though, you can't be sure.

What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.

LAS VEGAS — Only in Sin City would the sight of 8,000 Santas running amok through the streets not raise an eyebrow. Even the Elvis Santas barely drew second glances in this town, where the King is as common as bad buffets and bad judgment.

But such things are par for the course when you’re running in a city where everything is just a bit more … weird, including the sports. The insanity returns this weekend with a zany fitness double feature that brings the 8th annual Great Santa Run and the Rock n’ Roll Las Vegas Marathon to town.

Part of what makes the Santa fun run so, well, fun, is everyone gets a brand-new five-piece Santa suit. I caught the action a few years back and seeing these photos still makes me smile.

As silly as that is — and it’s pretty freakin’ silly — it’s but a warmup to the Rock n’ Roll marathon. These things are held in cities around the world and they’re always lots of fun — well, fun if you’re capable of running 26.2 miles without dying — but the Vegas version is just a bit more so.

It isn’t the 40,000 people running down Las Vegas boulevard, or the live music, or even the celebrity impersonators — is that Celine Dion? — huffing and puffing down the Strip.

No, what makes this a distinctly Vegas experience is the run-through wedding service. That’s right. You and your dearly beloved can take a brief detour from the course and get hitched outside the Paris Las Vegas hotel and casino. Talk about an endurance race.

I’m still awaiting the addition of a run-through divorce court. Maybe next year.